The CBSE Board Class 10 Social Science (087) exam has started today, March 7, 2026, at 10:30 AM. The exam will conclude at 1:30 PM.. You can find the paper analysis and the question paper in this article below.

The CBSE Class 10 Board Exams 2026 are currently ongoing across India, with major subjects like English, Mathematics and Hindi already conducted, while some subjects like  Elements of Book Keeping & Accountancy are remaining.

  • Student feedback so far suggests that the overall difficulty level has been easy to moderate, with most questions based directly on the NCERT syllabus.
  • Experts have also observed a stronger focus on competency-based, case-study, and application-oriented questions, in line with CBSE’s latest exam pattern.
  • Among the exams conducted so far, the Mathematics paper was considered moderate, with some sections being slightly lengthy and requiring good time management. The English paper was widely rated as easy and scoring, boosting student confidence early in the exam schedule. 

Overall, experts believe this year’s exams are fair, NCERT-focused, and designed to test real conceptual understanding rather than memorization.

The CBSE board exams for class 10th have started on February 17, 2026, with Mathematics (Standard and Basics) and will conclude on March 11, 2026. The exam has started at 10:30 am, and the entry was sharply closed at 10:00 am

Candidates can find below the CBSE Board class 10th subject-wise question papers and paper analysis.

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has revised the CBSE 10th dates 2026. CBSE 10th exam 2026 scheduled on March 3, 2026 is now rescheduled to March 11, 2026. You will get the revised dates on its official website - cbse.nic.in. The CBSE has scheduled the Class 10 board exams in two phases: February 17, 2026, and April 9, 2026, the first (main) exam and a second (improvement/re-attempt) exam. 

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) held a webinar on November 20, 2025, to clarify all doubts and questions students had in their minds regarding the conduct of CBSE Class 10 board exams twice starting this year. Rahul Singh said that students will have to mandatorily appear for the first set of exams, and can then choose to improve their performance in three subjects (out of math, science, social science, and two language papers) in the second set of exams. He further said that the Board expects a maximum of around 40% of students to appear in the second board exams in each of the main subjects.

  • The CBSE Class 10 phase has been scheduled from February 17 to March 11, 2026. CBSE 10th phase 2 exams 2026 will be conducted between May 15 and June 1, 2026.
  • The Phase 1 exams are mandatory for all students, while the Phase 2 exams will be optional for students who are not satisfied with their marks and want to improve their performance.

Related Links:

CBSE Class 10th: Question Papers

Question Paper  Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Mathematics Standard Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Mathematics Basics Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Home Science Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Beauty and Wellness Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Marketing and Sales Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Multi Skill Foundation Course Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Physical Activity Trainer Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Multi-Media Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Data Science Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Urdu (course B) Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Elements of Business Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Science Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Retail Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Security Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Automotive Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Introduction to Fin. Markets Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Introduction to Tourism Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Agriculture Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Food Production Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Front Office Operations Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Banking & Insurance Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Health Care Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Apparel Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Electronics & Hardware Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Foundation Skill for Sciences Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Design Thinking & Innovation Paper Download PDF 
CBSE Class 10th Computer Applications Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Information Technology Paper Download PDF
CBSE Class 10th Artificial Intelligence Paper Download PDF

CBSE Class 10th: Subject-Wise Paper Analysis

Subject Difficulty Level (Expected) Paper Analysis (Expected)
Mathematics Standard Moderate to Difficult The paper was lengthy with more calculation-based questions. Difficult questions were from Surface areas & Volumes, Arithmetic progressions.
Mathematics Basics Easy to Moderate It was less time-consuming and manageable. Difficult questions were asked from Circles, Surface Areas& Volumes, and Triangles.
Home Science Moderate The paper was balanced with manageable questions. Questions included MCQs, short answers, long answers, and some application-based questions were also present.
Beauty and Wellness Easy to Moderate Questions are asked about techniques, safety protocols, tool usage, plus some scenario-based applications.
Marketing and Sales Moderate  Many questions revolved around definitions and examples. Some situational questions where you apply principles in a business scenario are also asked. 
Multi-Skill Foundation Course Easy to Moderate Questions were concept-based, covering employability and basic life/professional skills.
Physical Activity Trainer Easy to Moderate Practical scenario or planning questions took a bit more thought, but were not tough.
Multi-Media Moderate Questions tested basic understanding of digital media tools, design ideas, and multimedia components. Some project/descriptive questions were based on your preparation in practical work.
Data Science Moderate to Tough A mix of conceptual questions and simple case problems is asked. Questions included basic data interpretation, simple programming/logic, data handling, and tool usage.
Urdu (course B) Easy  The exam was scoring with questions mostly based on the NCERTs. The passage-based questions were direct and easy to understand. 
Elements of Business Easy to Moderate  There were direct questions from NCERT topics like business activities, marketing, and entrepreneurship. The MCQs were mostly definition-based. 
Science Easy   The paper was easy, and students completed the exam around half an hour ago. However, the chemistry section was a little difficult.  
Computer Applications Easy to Moderate 

The paper followed the official pattern with MCQs, short and long answers, and case study questions. Students found most questions familiar and syllabus-based. Case-study questions required basic application of concepts and were not difficult.

Information Technology Easy 

The paper was mostly direct and NCERT-based. Students reported that it was one of the easiest skill subject papers. Questions focused on practical IT skills and employability skills.

Artificial Intelligence Easy to Moderate 

Students reported that the paper was balanced and scoring. Most MCQs were direct and NCERT-based, with no out-of-syllabus questions. Case-based questions were simple and practical, and tested understanding of AI applications.

CBSE Class 10th Datesheet (Revised)

CBSE Class 10th Exam Date 2026

Subjects

17-Feb-2026

Mathematics Standard

Mathematics Basic

18-Feb-2026

Home Science

20-Feb-2026

Beauty and Wellness
Marketing and Sales
Multi Skill Foundation Course
Data Science

21-Feb-2026

English

23-Feb-2026

Urdu Course A
Punjabi
Bengali
Tamil
Marathi
Gujarati

24-Feb-2026

Element of Business

Urdu Course B

25-Feb-2026

Science

26-Feb-2026

Security
Automotive
Agriculture
Food Production
Banking and Insurance
Healthcare 
Apparel
Design Thinking
Foundation skill for science

27-Feb-2026

Computer Applications
Information Technology
AI

28-Feb-2026

Arabic
Sanskrit
Rai 
Gurung
Tamang
Sherpa

2-March-2026

Hindi (Course A)
Hindi (Course b)

5-March-2026

Sindhi
Malayalam
Odia
Kannada

6-March-2026

Painting 

7-March-2026

Social Science 

9-March-2026

Telugu
Russian
Limboo
Lepcha
Nepali

10-March-2026

French

11-March-2026 Tibetan 
German
Japanese
Spanish
Kashmiri
Mizo

CBSE Class 10 Exam 2026 Eligibility Criteria

Before applying for CBSE class 10 compartment exams, candidates must fulfil the eligibility criteria for CBSE class 10 compartment exams 2025. Aspirants can go through the table below to check the eligibility criteria for CBSE class 10 compartment exams.

  • Regular Candidates who have appeared for the CBSE class 10 exam in 2025 and declared as compartment.
  • Regular candidates who appeared in 6/7 subjects and declared “Pass” due to the replacement of subjects can appear in that subject under the improvement of performance category, subject to the condition of a valid combination of subjects as per the date sheet.
  • Regular candidates who appeared in the CBSE class 10 exam and declared “Pass” can appear in up to two subjects under the improvement of performance category, subject to the condition of a valid combination of subjects as per the date sheet.

CBSE Class 10 Exam Pattern 2026

Component Weightage Notes
Theory Paper (Board) 80 marks 3 hours duration in most subjects
Internal Assessment 20 marks Periodic tests, practicals, portfolios etc
Question Paper Composition ~50% competency-based, ~20% MCQs, ~30% descriptive Applies to the theory 80-mark paper
Frequency of Exams Two phases/year from 2026 Phase 1 mandatory, Phase 2 optional
Minimum passing mark 33% in each subject & overall Applies to combined 100 marks (80+20)
Focus Areas Understanding, applications, reasoning Less emphasis on rote memorisation

CBSE Class 10 Syllabus 2026

Subject Key Units / Chapters Major Weightage Units*
Mathematics Number Systems; Algebra; Coordinate Geometry; Geometry; Trigonometry; Mensuration; Statistics & Probability. Algebra (~20/80), Geometry (~15/80), Trigonometry (~12/80)
Science Chemical Substances – Nature & Behaviour; World of Living; Natural Phenomena; etc. First two units very high (~25 each)
Social Science History (India & Contemporary World II); Political Science; Geography; Economics. Spread across domains – ensure breadth
English Reading Skills; Writing Skills & Grammar; Language through Literature. Literature part is 40/80 marks
Hindi Course A / Course B – Prose, Poetry, Grammar, Writing, Reading. Similar multi-skill structure